Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2011)

There are two big American films that were awarded  main prizes at Cannes last year, The Tree of Life (winner Palme d'Or) and Drive (best director). The second most prestigious price after the Palme d'Or is the Grand Prix and was won last year (shared) by Bir zamanlar Anadolu'da (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia) from Turkey.

The movie is about a group of men on a trip through the Anatolian grasslands in search for a dead body. This body belongs to some unlucky guy who was murdered. His killer is amongst the group of men including cops, a doctor, a prosecutor and some assisting staff. Trying to find the location where the killer, who confessed obviously, buried the body is not too easy since the search is done at night and the crime was committed after some substantial alcohol intake. The indistinctness of Turkish landscape (shot beautifully, mostly illuminated with just yellow headlights from a car) doesn’t really help the search. After some unsuccessful attempts the frustrations are rising for one the cops, while the doctor is starting to have a more and more interesting conversation with the ‘Clark Gable look-a-like’ prosecutor. The latter tells the doctor about a woman who announced her own death after giving childbirth. The doctor claims that this is medically unlikely and their conversation turns out to become a big issue as the movie progresses.

After a stop at a small village to have some dinner, where almost all the men are fascinated by a beautiful girl, the next morning the body is found and has to be taken to the mortuary for autopsy. The way the body is dug up and transported is good for some hilarious cinema. Back in the mortuary the wife of the victim has to identify the corpse and the doctor and an assistant perform the autopsy (which is not displayed visually, but does result in some uncomfortable sounds).

If I would have to describe Once Upon a Time in Anatolia  in 'Hollywood' terms I would end up somewhere between the Coen Brothers and Jim Jarmusch. This movie is minimalistic, beautiful, subtle and has a lot of funny dialogue and some hilarious situations. It is minimal in both plot and camerawork. The plot is not very important,this movie is all about the underlying emotions and thoughts the characters have. Slowly (very slowly even) this becomes clear to the viewer, who might expect a crime movie for at least the first hour.

What I love about this movie is that it doesn’t explain a lot but gives the viewer room for his or her own interpretation. The only flaw the director is making in my opinion  is that its length (150 minutes) is challenging its viewer to stay focused from time to time. Some scenes are so long and extensive that they become dull after a while (but perhaps this was the directors intention). On the other hand the director is skillful enough to keep a movie like this interesting until the last (brilliant) shot.

Because of its slow pace Once Upon a Time in Anatolia is definitely not a movie for the generation that requires a lot of visual stimulation, but is a treat for the patient and open minded viewer.   

8.5/10